Going Mobile

An artist’s works add handmade joy to nurseries

WHEN A FRIEND announced an upcoming baby shower would have a specific theme, Paulette Gollan, left, decided to make something special for the newborn.“I came up with an idea for a mobile,” says Gollan, of White Lake. The unique gift — with its four pint-size, handmade hot air balloons and two white clouds — was a huge hit, and word spread about Gollan’s work.

The mobiles were so popular that Gollan, a corporate marketer and mother of three, began creating and selling them on Etsy. Before long, she decided to open her own business, Sunshine & Vodka LLC, based in Waterford. Gollan runs the entire operation, from taking orders to shipping. When asked about the business’ name, she says it’s based on two of her favorite things in: sunshine and vodka. The exquisite, heirloom-quality mobiles — which can be as tall as 54 inches and sell from about $145-$550 — generally feature animals, clouds, and hot air balloons. The charming menagerie often includes hippos, giraffes, and elephants. “The majority of my orders are custom,” Gollan says. Between cutting, sewing, and dreaming up new ideas, she took a bit of time to talk with us and share information about her unique “hang-ups.”

Q: How did you learn to sew?A: I taught myself to sew. I always liked to tinker with making things. I like working with fabric.

Q: What type of discipline does having your own creative business require?A: I served in the U.S. Army after high school, and it taught me self-discipline. I’m up between 4 and 5 a.m., I get dressed, and I go to work in my studio. If I get there past 7 a.m., it bothers me.

Q: What has been one of your more unique mobiles?A: A Harry Potter Quidditch mobile. sunshineandvodka.com — Carol Hopkins

Water, Water, Everywhere

Diving into artist Naomi Ernest’s world of Great Lakes splendor

catch the wave
Says Naomi Ernest of her ink artwork:
“The composition of my wave drawings
has a simplicity, but as your eyes
wander into the detail, it becomes
mesmerizing.”

WHEN LOOKING AT Naomi Ernest’s archival ink pen drawings, you feel as though you’re riding atop a wave or have just discovered the elusive Petoskey stone. She recently put down her pens for a few minutes to share her Great Lakes inspiration.

Q: Where do you live?
A: I live in an old farmhouse with my husband and five children, on a sweet little piece of land edged by field and forest between Manchester and Saline. We’re renovating our home.

Q: You’re crazy about the Great Lakes, yes?
A: My husband and I grew up in west Michigan, so lake trips were part of childhood. Now we go on long weekends — backpacking, exploring bluffs, and more.

Q: What’s the story behind your detailed sketches?
A: My waves and Petoskey stone drawings began as a source of calm. I patiently draw line after line after line, almost in meditation, and those billions of lines then translate into a sense of calm. It puts me back in a place where I’m very much at ease. naomiernest.com — Megan Swoyer

Calling for Color

Some of this issue’s featured designers share their favorite ways to add beauty to vacation homes
By Megan Swoyer

Just Bee-Cause

Here’s the buzz on great locally made honey-infused bath products

BEE CLEAn
Bee Lovely Botanicals’ soaps, made in Unionville, Mich.,
are free of parabens and other harmful ingredients.

This past January, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared the rusty-patched bumblebee endangered, with populations down almost 90 percent since the 1990s. These and many other species of bees have come under threat due to factors such as loss of habitat, pesticides, and disease.

Thankfully, there are people making great efforts to help save these crucial pollinators from extinction — like Jodie and Josh Kieliszew- -
ski of Bee Lovely Botanicals LLC, a family-run bee farm in Unionville.

The Kieliszewskis first found their passion for bees in 2007, when a swarm took hold of a tree in the family’s yard. Not long after the discovery, the family purchased their first hives and, with the honey produced, Jodie began making soaps and lotions.

In 2010, Bee Lovely Botanicals was born. Specializing in natural beeswax skincare, honey cold-process soaps, and raw and infused honey, Bee Lovely Botanicals is all about handcrafting wholesome, good-for-you products. All of the company’s products are free of parabens and propylene glycol. They include a variety of treats, from Pink Lemonade Beeswax Lip Balm to Bee-ola Natural Honey Soap Bath Crayons and Buffalo Man Shave Soap. There’s also raw honey, which, unlike traditional honey, features naturally occurring pollen known to be high in beneficial B vitamins.

Today, the husband-and-wife duo travels with their three sons to markets across the country advocating their products and natural beekeeping methods.

“Besides the need for bees to pollinate, and the fact that bees give you honey, pollen, propolis, beeswax, and bee venom (all good for humans!), bees are just really cool little creatures,” Jodie says. beelovelybotanicals.com — GN

SOFT LANDING IN ROCHESTER: St. Louis-based Soft Surroundings (softsurroundings.com), a leading luxury lifestyle brand, opened its first Michigan location at The Village of Rochester Hills in Rochester Hills. The store features stylish and comfortable home goods and apparel that are globally inspired.

KEY TO SUCCESS: Interior designer Kristen Eleni Shellenbarger, left, formerly of Clarkston-based Artichoke Interiors, has launched her own firm. The new Iron Key Designs (ironkeydesigns.com) is based in Bloomfield Hills.

THE IRON IS HOT: “More and more empty nesters are purchasing our handcrafted iron beds for their new, downsized quarters,” says Elizabeth Umney, owner of Heirloom Bed & Co. (bedandboutique.com) in Plymouth — Michigan’s exclusive distributor of Brass Beds of Virginia. “They suit any décor, are timeless, and they make a room seem bigger because of the airy openness of their design,”Umney says.

KITCHEN GALLERY: Designer Lauren Tolles (Detroit Home Design Awards 2017 Rising Star), left, has opened Maison Birmingham (maisonbirmingham.com), a luxury design-build firm specializing in kitchens and bathrooms. Its Birmingham showroom includes displays as well as a work space that enables clients, designers, builders, and architects to meet in a gallery-like setting.

TARGETING MILLENIALS: What conveniences and comforts are millenials looking for in apartment and condo living? “Millenials are seeking more than just a place to stay; they’re demanding a truly immersive resort-style living experience. The fitness center is a top amenity for this demographic,” reports Cindy Wick, regional vice president of Western National Property Management, in Multi-Housing News.

RAISING THE BAR: According to builder and author Boyce Thompson (boycethompsonmedia.com), researchers at this year’s Pacific Coast Builder’s Conference concluded that “bars have come back in; they don’t have to be elaborate, but they do require some dedicated space in the sweet spot where entertaining is likely to occur.”

AND FROM THE EAST: In Shelby Township, househunt.com reports 14.9 percent of the homes most recently on the market are condos and townhomes, with an average price range of $104,000 (1,100 square feet, two bedrooms) to $299,000 (2,100 square feet, three bedrooms).– By Honey Murray